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Entering the Evolution Debate: A Study of Public Opinion ...
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Entering the Evolution Debate: A Study of Public Opinion at
Cornell University
Rob Fishman
December, 2005 Bio EE 207
TA: Trevor Rivers Prof. William Provine
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Introduction
Though controversy about evolution has been alive and well since Darwin first
penned his Origin of Species in 1859, today’s political climate has popularized the debate
to a level of household recognition, such that buzzwords like “intelligent design” seem to
permeate the national discourse. Banter over the origin of man has not been restricted to
the front page of the New York Times (though media coverage has certainly not been
limited), and has trickled down to colleges and universities. On October 21, Hunter
Rawlings III, the Interim President of Cornell University, made evolution the centerpiece
of his State of the University Address, a time usually reserved for a discussion of the state
of the university. “Right now, this issue is playing out in school districts, cities, counties
and states across the country… I want to suggest that universities like Cornell can make a
valuable contribution to the nation’s cultural and intellectual discourse,” he said.
Rawlings’ suggestion, while initially appealing, raises some questions about the
nature of college campuses. As the Washington Post noted in July of 2005:
In general, colleges have long been liberal bastions, with Democratic presidential candidates routinely winning the student vote and with polls indicating that professors are on average further to the left in their views than most voters.
In March, 2005, the Post reported that college faculties “lean further to the left than even
the most conspiratorial conservatives might have imagined,” with up to 87 percent of the
faculty at elite schools reporting to be liberal. Rawlings’ suggestion—“engaging issues
like evolution and intelligent design both internally, in the classroom, in the residential
houses, and in campus-wide debates, and also externally by making our voices heard in
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the spheres of public policy and politics”—makes the assumption that Cornell houses an
informed and diverse population capable of debate.
In this paper, I analyze survey results from the Cornell University community to
test for a wide variety of views. Rawlings’ ideal rests on a campus capable of spirited
and informed discourse. With that in mind, I look at students’ opinions on evolution and
intelligent design: are they firmly planted in ideologically opposing camps, or are
opinions scattered and unconnected? In his speech, Rawlings cites statistics from an
evolution class at Cornell, in which the students were evenly divided between purpose
and non-guided evolution. I look more deeply into this distinction, to see if opinions on
evolution are simple knee-jerk reactions or deeply held beliefs. To confirm or deny these
opinions, I test for beliefs on related topics, like abortion and prayer in school. Finally, I
discuss patterns within the data for characteristics like race, gender, high school makeup,
and religion.
Next, I discuss the survey data within the context of public opinion literature.
Many scholars (Converse 1964, Zaller 1992, Delli Carpini & Keeter 1996) have
suggested that public opinion on most issues is a function of elite opinion. Converse and
others have argued that the vast majority of people hold nonattitudes—the absence of an
opinion—on many issues. Even among those citizens aware of current evens, “attention
to politics drives a socialization process that ties the attitudes of politically informed
Americans to those of political elites” (Zaller 1992). Perhaps opinions on evolution and
intelligent design within Cornell University are really nonattitudes—responses to elite
opinion stemming from the media, and leaders like President Rawlings. On the other
hand, students may have real opinions that could potentially foster positive debate.
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After assessing a college campus’ ability to conduct thoughtful debate on the
issue of evolution, I turn to policy recommendations. Rawlings has suggested that
Cornell University take an active role in the evolution debate on many levels, but how is
such a discussion best facilitated? Through an in-depth look at the survey results, I
suggest a few specific ways in which college campuses might foster understanding and
debate within the student body and the faculty. While it is easy to call for campus-wide
discourse, the implementation of programs to facilitate such debate may be difficult.
Prior to enacting these programs, university administrators ought to understand the best
means of communicating with the student body and with the faculty. Absent a real
discussion of implementation, calls for open discourse amount to little more than empty
promises.
Methodology and sample
A survey sample was administered to 40 members of the Cornell community,
with the vast majority of respondents enrolled as students. The survey first asked basic
questions about gender, race, religion, education, and political ideology. Of those
surveyed, 20 respondents were male, and 20 were female. Eight respondents identified
themselves as agnostic, three as atheist, 12 as Christian, 15 as Jewish, one as Muslim,
and one as “other.” Six students classified themselves as Asian, four students said they
were African American, and the remainder—30 respondents—were White/Caucasian. A
little over one-fourth of the sample (11 respondents) went to secular private high schools,
while two students went to religious private schools. The other 27 students went to
public schools, almost all of which held at least 500 students. For the most part, the
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public schools housed upwards of 1,500 students, while the private schools were
characterized by enrollment levels between 100-1000 students.
To avoid biases and random answers, steps were taken within the survey. As
Mueller (1994) notes, “While people will often cheerfully answer poll questions as if they
knew what they were talking about, it is reasonably clear that by most standards many
people simply cannot be said to have much of an opinion on a great many issues.” To
counteract this effect—respondents “pontificating in a seemingly authoritative manner”
(Ibid.)—the survey employed comparisons of differently worded questions and questions
with expectations. As Mueller explains, “…one can compare differently worded
questions that… have been asked at the same time to see what sorts of words, cues, and
images seem to have affected the response.” If the introduction of new themes into
similar questions does not change response rates, opinions are generally seen as more
deeply held and legitimate. In the survey, for instance, one answer to a question was “No
higher being played a role in the creation and development of humans,” while another
question asked, “Do you believe a higher being played any role in the creation of man?.”
If respondents answer these two questions in the same way, their answers are more
reliable.
Secondly, comparisons can be made with expectations to test the validity of the
survey. Given the current debate in the media over evolution and intelligent design, one
might expect to find passionate outcries of opinion from students at an Ivy League
institution. Setting such a high standard, however, can taint the data if the responses are
somewhat mellower than one’s expectations. “Surprise is mostly related to one’s
previous conceptions (or misconceptions)” (Mueller 1994). To avoid this type of
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surprise, thus, questions were embedded in the survey for respondents to assess their own
knowledge or interest level before answering real questions about the debate. Prior to
questions about the place of intelligent design in public schools, for instance, respondents
were asked, “How well do you understand the evolution/intelligent design debate?”
Asking these types of questions minimizes bias within the survey by mitigating the
exaggerated framework in which opinions are often sought.
Results
— Opinions on evolution and purpose
Survey results on evolution and intelligent design demonstrate fractured support
for evolution on campus marked by uncertainty and unawareness. Like the survey results
cited by Hunter Rawlings, there appeared to be an even split between “evolutionists” and
those who believed in purpose or
intelligent design. Of those
surveyed, only 14 students
believed that “no higher being
played a role in the creation of
humans,” while seven students
said that “a higher being created
man initially, but the species developed thereafter through evolution.” Another five
respondents said that “a higher being has guided the scientific process of evolution all
along,” while only two students said that “man was created in his exact form by a higher
being many years ago.” The other 12 respondents said they were unsure.
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In all, respondents who answered the question were evenly split — 14 to 14
between pure evolution, and evolution with some degree of purpose or creationism. The
largest group of students, however, was comprised of those who were not sure about
evolution and intelligent design. Interestingly, the majority of unsure respondents
proclaimed to understand the theory of evolution “Very well” or “well.” The creationists,
likewise, all said they understood the theory of evolution “well.” The most stable
opinions centered on the “compromise” options of purposeful evolution and divine but
unguided evolution.
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Three respondents said that while they believed in a higher being, they did not think that
the creation and development of human life was facilitated by this divine power.
Conversely, all of the respondents who did not believe in a higher being said that
evolution was unguided and not purposeful. Again, opinions on whether or not a higher
being existed were characterized by uncertainty, with 13 respondents answering “Not
sure,” or claiming that they believed “somewhat” in a higher being.
Even more uncertainty was generated in dissecting respondents’ knowledge of
evolution. Roughly equal numbers of students believed in random selection, the “force”
of natural selection, and Lamarckian use and disuse. Darwin himself was confused by
Lamarckian theories, which attributes a giraffe’s long neck, for instance, to reaching up
for high leaves. As he writes in the Origin of Species, “the drooping [of dogs’ ears] is
due to the disuse of the muscles of the ear” (11). Though the majority of respondents
who believed in scientific evolution correctly answered that evolution is maintained by
the inheritance of randomly generated traits, some evolutionist respondents still
subscribed to Lamarckianism or evolution intermixed with purpose. Moreover, the
survey sample was evenly divided between those who felt that evolution was a “theory,”
and those who said it was a “fact.”∗ Six respondents, therefore, said evolution was a
factual process, despite their belief that a higher being was involved in the origin of man.
In addition, of those who said evolution was fact, six respondents said that they were not
sure about their beliefs about evolution.
The results suggest that while there is support for evolution present on campus, it
is limited by uncertainty and a lack of information. Over 75 percent of those surveyed
∗ This question does not validate either perspective, but only seeks to elicit opinions
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said that they understood evolution “well” or “very well,” even though most of them did
not understand the basic mechanisms through which evolution takes place. While
students are confident in their beliefs about evolution, thus, their certainty is perhaps
unfounded. Illustrative of this principle is that only three students said they understood
the ongoing debate between evolution and intelligent design “very well,” suggesting that
when their ideas about evolution are challenged, students lose confidence.
— Opinions about evolution and intelligent design in public schools
There is a groundswell of support among students at Cornell for the teaching of
evolution in public schools, though, like general opinions on evolution, the support is not
very solid. Nearly 75 percent of those surveyed said that evolution should be taught
“exclusively in science classes, and intelligent design should not.” No respondents
believed that intelligent design should be
taught exclusively, though about 25 percent
of the respondents said that intelligent
design and evolution should both be taught
in science classes. Among the students who
said intelligent design should be taught in
classes, about half answered that intelligent design is “consistent with the science taught
in schools,” and would therefore “fit within the science curricula of public schools.” Half
of these students, however, were either “not sure,” or disagreed, and said that “the
scientific method in schools cannot include intelligent design.” Several students thus
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held disjunctive opinions about the teaching of intelligent design, arguing both for its
inclusion in science curricula, and for its disqualification.
Ambivalence was also seen in questions regarding intelligent design’s place in
schools under the U.S. Constitution. While for the most part, students who said that
intelligent design should not be taught in science classes also said that the Constitution
prohibits its inclusion in curricula, some students gave mixed answers. 10 percent of the
survey respondents said that “intelligent design is a scientific theory and should be taught
in schools,” but then said that intelligent design cannot be included in the curricula of
public schools. Moreover, three students who said that “intelligent design should not be
taught” in public schools later responded that “intelligent design is a scientific theory, and
should be taught in public schools.” The latter question, however, was asked within the
context of the Constitution, indicating that question wording may affect answers to
ultimately similar questions, and that opinions are not so reliable.
— Awareness of the national debate
Cornell students are somewhat informed about the national debate taking place
right now between evolutionists and proponents of intelligent design, but their knowledge
is clearly limited. Across the country, school boards have been challenged by the concept
of intelligent design, and its place in school curricula. In Kansas, the Board of Education
decided last summer to make the teaching of evolution optional, and remove it from
standardized testing. This position is seen as widely supported in the United States, with
around 50 percent of the country consistently agreeing that man was created many years
ago in close to his present form—the Biblical telling of creation. In Kentucky, all
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references to “evolution” were replaced in textbooks with the phrase “change over time.”
President Bush endorsed teaching “both sides” of the debate, and Pope Benedict XVI
declared the universe an “intelligent project.”
Cornell students, while aware of the national controversy, seem fairly sheltered
and removed from the ongoing debate. Almost 75 percent of those surveyed identified
“ultra conservative groups” as the leading supporter of the intelligent design movement,
while most of the others indicated that the “Republican Party” was behind intelligent
design. Only three respondents said “Very liberal groups” supported the design
movement. 40 percent of students correctly said that half of the country believes man
was created pretty much in his current form, though the majority of respondents thought
only 10-25 percent of the country believes that. Thus, while Cornell students can identify
the “sides” of the debate, they are unsure about how many people support each
movement.
— Opinions on related issues
The reliability of Cornell students’ opinions on evolution can also be registered by
examining their opinions on linked issues like prayer in school and abortion. Often,
support for intelligent
design has been
grouped with other
“religious” issues, such
that opinions across
the board might match
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up. Attitudes on prayer in school, whether or not an afterlife exists, and opinions on
abortion do seem to match up with opinions on evolution. In Figure 1.2, opinions on
these related issues are compared between supporters of unguided evolution, and
proponents of intelligent design. The graph shows that evolutionists are typically pro-
choice, do not believe in an afterlife, and do not support prayer in school. Proponents of
intelligent design, on the other hand, are more in favor of prayer in school, more often
pro-life, and more believing of an afterlife. Attitudes on evolution can therefore be
grounded within the context of a larger ideological set of beliefs.
— Attitudes stratified by group
Opinions on evolution can also be seen by dividing the respondents by group:
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Gender seems to matter not at all for opinions on evolution, with an exactly equal number
of respondents of each gender believing in evolution and intelligent design (and not being
sure). White/Caucasian students were equally divided between the three options,
indicating either that being White has little effect on one’s opinion on evolution, or that
deeper factors like religion stratify White students’ beliefs. Though the small sample size
for Black and Asian students might have skewed the results, it appears that Asian
students are more supportive of evolution, and Black students are more likely to believe
intelligent design.
— Where do college students learn about evolution and intelligent design?
Survey results show that while the media serves as the primary source for
information on the evolution debates, college-age students are more trusting of
information taught in classes. Over 50 percent of those surveyed indicated that they
“learn about the
evolution/intelligent
design debate” through
the media, while 37
percent said they keep
up on the debate
college classes or
programs. Just a
handful of students
listed their friends or family as a primary source of information. Interestingly, only 23
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percent of students—most of whom listed the media as their primary source—said the
media was the most reliable source for information on evolution. The majority of
respondents (close to 50 percent) listed college classes as the most reliable source for
information. Though students trust their college courses the most, in short, they seem to
rely mostly on the media for information. This dichotomy raises an interesting and
unique problem, because it suggests that students turn to sources they consider unreliable
when the university does not adequately address a subject.
Discussion
The results of the survey suggest that college campuses like Cornell are not ready
to engage in the type of large-scale debate that Hunter Rawlings has envisioned. While
students within Cornell are certainly capable of understanding the complexities
associated with evolution, they have not been exposed to much data or information on the
topic. Students’ ability to participate in discourse hinges on some threshold level of
knowledge that has yet to be reached. This conclusion is seen through three major
findings:
(1) College students are not well informed about evolution, intelligent design, and
the differences between the two.
Though students at Cornell are aware of an ongoing national debate over the place
of intelligent design and evolution in public schools, their limited knowledge of the
subjects limits their capacity to weigh in on the discussion. Though most students said
they understood the theory of evolution well or very well, Figure 1.2 demonstrates a
curious relationship: the highest levels of uncertainty are witnessed among those who
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claim to understand evolution very well. Students, moreover, had trouble identifying
natural selection—the mechanism producing evolution. Mueller’s claim, cited above,
seems particularly applicable: students are “pontificating in a seemingly authoritative
manner” (1994). Students, in short, express uncertainty on two levels: first, they are
simply uninformed about some of the basic tenants of evolutionary theory and intelligent
design; second, they profess to understand more than they actually do. There is a
contradiction, in short, between their actual levels of understanding and their perceived
levels of understanding.
This distinction becomes obvious when students try to apply their knowledge
about evolution and intelligent design. In arguing for or against the teaching of either
side in public schools, students can only offer superficial opinions. Some students, as
seen above, argued for both the inclusion and exclusion of intelligent design in science
classes. While overwhelming support for the teaching of evolution in public schools is
registered, the support is weak. Students are neither confident in their opinions, nor able
to reconcile facts about evolution with their general beliefs. High levels of “not sure”
responses characterize many of the survey questions, and differently worded questions
invalidate many of the given responses. Though evolution is neither a “fact” nor a
“theory,” some students who said it was a fact also believed that a higher being created
mankind. The implication is clear: students’ insight into evolution, intelligent design,
and their place in public schools is not supported by a logical or empirical foundation.
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(2) Students are capable of engaging in debate about evolution, but they are limited
by the information available to them.
Though Cornell students’ opinions on evolution are superficial, they are
supported by a backbone ideology. The role of ideology has been disputed in the study
of public opinion, such that many scholars argue that citizens are uninformed and
ignorant. In summarizing the work of political theorists who have downplayed the role
of ideology in decision-making (Converse 1964), Kinder has constructed the term
“ideological innocence” (1983). Ideologically innocent citizens are unconstrained by
broad values in their responses to survey questions; in this view, “most Americans
approach the political world innocent of ideology: indifferent to standard ideological
concepts, lacking a consistent perspective on public policy, and with authentic opinions
on only a handful of policy questions” (Kinder 1988, p. 393). Consequently, one expects
individuals to answer questions outside of (rather than within) a political context. Lane
(1962) argues, in this vein, that individuals “morselize” rather than “contextualize”—they
provide disconnected opinions outside of an ideological umbrella.
Questions asked about issues related in evolution—depicted in Figure 2.1—show
that Cornell students are somewhat constrained by ideology. First, only 13 percent of
respondents said they were “moderate”—a response often seen as a “copout” in the
absence of a real ideology when respondents “either admit ignorance of invent a ‘non-
attitude’” (Kinder 1983, p. 393). Attitudes about abortion, an afterlife, and prayer in
school, to the contrary, all seem to correlate fairly highly with opinions about evolution.
This correlation may be the result of the relative salience of these issues in the current
American political climate. “When policies become entangled with moral, racial, and
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religious values, indifference and non-attitudes may vanish altogether” (p. 397). That
attitudes about evolution and intelligent design might be ideologically relevant because of
their controversial status, however, does not detract from the finding: opinions about
evolution at Cornell are not “non-attitudes.” While opinions at Cornell are internally
unstable, they are externally valid.
(3) Attitudes about evolution and intelligent design stem from the elite-dominated
media instead of institutions of higher learning
The above finding raises an interesting contradiction: why should superficial
opinions register so strongly with related issues? I suggest that because opinion is
dominated by political elites, and transmitted through the media, ideological students can
construct unstable opinions. Absent ample information, even the “best and the brightest”
cannot—and will not—offer truly informed attitudes about evolution and intelligent
design. Delli Karpini and Keeter argue that while in a perfect world, all citizens might be
generalists who make decisions with a “wider range of informed personal and candidate
issue positions” (1996, p. 50). Since there is a cost associated with gaining information,
though, individuals resort to heuristics—information shortcuts—to arrive at opinions:
“These heuristics…involve distancing oneself from the raw data by depending on
someone else’s synthesis of information regarding a particular issue or candidate.” (p.
51). Even ideologically aware students at Cornell, thus, have an incentive for relying on
external sources of information.
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The survey results suggest that Cornell students turn to the media, rather than
their school, for informational shortcuts. Zaller’s theory of elite leadership provides a
context for this behavior:
There is, moreover, much evidence showing that, even in situations in which people possess the information necessary to engage in informed deliberation, they will not take the trouble to do so…. The most that can be expected is that they choose among competing elite and media messages—at least in cases in which competing messages are present—on the basis of source credibility (1992, p. 187-188).
Zaller’s theory expounds the important role of the elite media in public opinion. As
individuals become passive in finding out about current events, they turn to the media for
abridged and often slanted content. That Cornell students most frequently cite the media
as their primary source for information on the evolution debate seems to confirm Zaller’s
theory in this case. College classes are, at best, secondary sources of information in this
view.
Policy Implications
The contradiction above—that students trust their colleges, but learn from the
media—raises an obvious suggestion: Cornell needs to do more to educate its students
before entering the national debate. Cornell is left, then, at a crossroads: it can decide to
inform the student body, and heed Rawlings’ call for participation in the national debate;
or it can drop the issue, and focus on traditional college subject material. In short,
Cornell should either engage the issue fully, or withdraw completely. There are many
dangers in allowing the University the option of entering the debate without proper
information levels. Rawlings was quoted in the Cornell Daily Sun as saying that, “When
professors tend only to their own disciplinary gardens, public discourse is seriously
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undernourished” (News, Oct. 21). Essentially, he is asking faculty to allow the
evolution/intelligent design debate to enter the classroom. There are many obstacles that
Cornell must take into account before integrating evolution into curricula across the
disciplines.
A major problem for Cornell in teaching about evolution and intelligent design is
that professors might allow their own biases to influence the classroom discussion, much
as the media is often accused of slanting is news reports. Gustafson (1973) argues that
professors in universities often use their credentials and awards from outside the campus
setting as an excuse for preaching in the classroom as a voice of moral authority:
Professors who claim to be “objective” in their research and teaching often speak prophetically outside the classroom—and sometimes within it. It is not uncommon for scientists and scholars to translate the acclaim they justly receive through such recognition as a Nobel prize into moral authority to speak through the media on all sorts of social questions. Scholars in the human and physical sciences recognize how quickly their findings feed into policy proposals and programs of action.
There are a few implications that stem from Gustafson’s observation. First, just how
objective are professors? In the introduction of this paper, statistics are given to
demonstrate that the vast majority of professors are ideologically liberal. If the faculty is
much more likely to impose only one viewpoint on students, there were be little potential
for debate. Second, professors have motives in teaching news-worthy subjects. Like
Rawlings—whose speech was covered by the New York Times—professors might seek
the media spotlight, and engage the evolution debate only to proliferate their own views.
A second danger of teaching about the national debate at Cornell stems from the
compartmentalization of knowledge in most universities. Simply put, students with
different major focuses understand different components of evolution: the biology major
is familiar with natural selection, while the government major might be aware of the
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intelligent design movement. In practice, though, these two students are not equipped
with the tools to engage one another in debate:
American academia today is a community primarily in a broad institutional sense, a collection of people going through a vast enterprise—community in the sense that we use the term when we speak of the “business community” as a recognizable segment of national life. The academic disciplines are in one sense united through their common missions—teaching, the advancement of knowledge, and social service. But disciplines have been so diverse, so independent, and so bound up with professional communities outside academia that they require no common language or even shared values and methods within the university in order to pursue those missions (Russell 1990). [Emphasis added]
The implication is that Cornell is not ready to engage the nation in debate on evolution
and intelligent design, because the university is necessarily fractured between divided
fields of study. As such, something like a coordinated curricula appealing to students
across the disciplines would be needed to educated students up to a level where they
might all engage in a national discourse.
Conclusion
The results of the survey are not all that surprising—they indicated, above all, that
most college students are not that involved with current events. Many students are aware
of the intelligent design movement, but many are not. President Rawlings seems to
undermine this reality when he calls for Cornell to partake in the national debate. A
precondition to discourse is knowledge, and the student body at Cornell is not especially
knowledgeable. As I have suggested above, Cornell can follow two courses: it can ignore
Rawlings’ plea, or it can engage the subject of evolution across the university. Cornell
has done little since Rawlings’ speech to revamp its curricula, or integrate evolution into
its course materials. As such, one might fear that this new initiative is destined for
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mediocrity. A half-hearted attempt at entering the national debate will likely compound
students’ misunderstandings, rather than facilitate their knowledge. Unless Cornell can
engender support and interest within the student body for embracing this issue of national
importance, thus, Cornell might want to avoid the controversy surrounding evolution and
intelligent design.
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Appendix 1
What gender are you? Male Female Which best describes you? Very liberal Liberal Moderate Conservative Very conservative Not sure How would you best describe your religious beliefs? Christian Jewish Muslim Buddhist Agnostic Atheist Other Which best describes your race? White/Caucasian African American Asian Hispanic Other Do you believe in a higher being? Yes No Somewhat Not sure What type of high school did you go to? Public Secular private Religious private Home school How many students attended your high school? 100-500 500-1500 1500-3000
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3000+ In your opinion, how well do you understand the theory of evolution? Very well Well Somewhat familiar Not well Not at all Under the theory of evolution, what causes the “survival of the fittest”? Through use and disuse, species abandon unneeded traits and strengthen preferable traits
The giraffe’s neck grows over time to eat from trees Species act altruistically to benefit other species
The fittest bumblebees survive to protect flowers The force of natural selection chooses preferable traits
Nature selects the fastest cheetah Randomly generated traits are preserved and inherited
The quickest fox lives to reproduce
Which best describes your beliefs about evolution and intelligent design? No higher being played a role in the creation and development of humans A higher being created man initially, but the species developed thereafter through
evolution A higher being has guided the scientific process of evolution all along Man was created in his exact form by a higher being many years ago Not sure How well do you understand the evolution/intelligent design debate? Very well Well Somewhat Not well Not at all Not sure Which best describes your feelings about the place of “intelligent design”—the theory that a higher being played a role in the creation of man—in public schools? Science classes should teach intelligent design exclusively, and eliminate evolution from
their curricula Intelligent design and evolution should both be taught in science classes Evolution should be taught exclusively in science classes, and intelligent design should
not be taught Not sure How do you feel about prayer in school? Prayer in school should be mandatory every morning Time should be set aside for optional prayer Time should not be designated for prayer in schools How do you feel about abortion?
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I think life begins at conception, and abortion is essentially murder I support a woman’s right to have an abortion I support abortion, but with limits (stage of pregnancy, etc.) To the best of your knowledge, which group most supports the teaching of intelligent design in public schools? Very liberal groups The Republican Party The Democratic Party Ultra conservative groups Independents Should college campuses incorporate intelligent design into their science curricula? Yes No Not sure How, if at all, do you learn about the evolution/intelligent design debate? College High school The media Friends/family I don’t Should religious beliefs be taught in public schools? Yes No Do you believe a higher being played any role in the creation of man? Yes No Not sure What percentage of the United States believes human beings did not evolve? About 10% About 25% About 50% About 75% Can someone be religious and also believe in evolution? Yes No Not sure I would best describe evolution as a… Theory Fact
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Did a higher being create man in his current form at some point in history? Yes No Does teaching intelligent design in public schools violate the Constitutional separation of Church and State? Intelligent design is a scientific theory, and should be taught in schools Intelligent design is a religious belief, and should not be taught in schools Not sure Would intelligent design fit within the science curricula of our public schools? Yes, intelligent design is consistent with the science taught in schools No, the scientific method taught in schools cannot include intelligent design Not sure What is the most reliable source of information about the evolution debate? The media College classes Word of mouth Programs sponsored by colleges Do you believe in an afterlife? Yes No Not sure
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http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/03/08/creationism.vs.evolution/ 8 March 2005.
Faler, Brian. Clinton and Other Democratic Leaders Urge Young Liberals to Get
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Russell, David R. (1990) Writing across the Curriculum in Historical Perspective: Toward a Social Interpretation. National Council of Teachers of English. (p. 54)
Zaller, John. (1992) “Elite Leadership of Mass Opinion: New Evidence from the
Gulf War,” In Lance Bennet and David Paletz (eds.) Taken by Storm: The Media, Public Opinion and U.S. Foreign Policy in the Gulf War, chapter 9 (186-209).